Disc drive machines record and reproduce information stored on magnetic media. Conventional Winchester type disc drives include a plurality of vertically aligned rotating information storage discs journaled about a spindle motor assembly within a housing. The magnetic discs each have at least one associated magnetic head that is adapted to transfer information between the disc and an external system. Each head is carried by an elongated flexure arm. The flexure arms are vertically aligned and are each attached to a common head positioner assembly. The head positioner assembly is adapted to move the heads back and forth in unison across the face of the vertically aligned discs. The head positioner assembly may be either rotationally mounted, or may take the form of a linear carriage that is free to move back and forth along a single axis. In either case, the head positioner assembly is adapted to rapidly and precisely position the heads relative to the magnetic discs. Rapid movements of the various components, including the spindle motor, the head positioner assembly and the discs tend to generate a wide variety of undesirable vibrations within the disc drive.
The housing is typically divided into upper and lower casings which are sealed together with a gasket to prevent the introduction of dirty air into the disc drive. The gasket also serves to dampen vibrations within the housing. Conventional gaskets suffer two primary drawbacks. Initially, gaskets that are thick enough to provide good damping characteristics tend to bulge outward when compressed between the upper and lower casing. Additionally, conventional gaskets lack any structural rigidity and thus are difficult to position on the casing for production. The extra time spent accurately positioning the gasket in the middle of the production line increases both the time and the costs involved in producing disc drives.